My dearest Readers,
I am currently writing a wedding scene for my latest book set in 1829 and because I absolutely LOVE research and always pick through all sorts of details to make sure that everything is as it should be, I came across some rather fascinating historical details that I just had to share. Now mind you, I can’t possibly cover ALL of them, as this post would be ridiculously long, but, I’ll definately post enough to make it worth your while. Oh. And this will be part 1 of 2. The second will be posted on the 15th of this month.

So. The word “wed” is actually Anglo Saxon and means to pledge. When the term originally came about, pledge actually didn’t refer to the wedding vows themselves. But rather the money or land that a groom handed over to the father of the bride.

Let us begin with the Romans, shall we? A Roman bride basically wore a white dress-like toga. Same color as is worn today. Her veil and shoes, however, were either red or yellow. Colors which were considered sacred to the Hymen. And uh, no, I’m not talking about THE hymen people…ehm…I’m speaking of the goddess of prosperity and fertility (though now you know where the word hymen originates from – waggling brows). The Roman bride would wear a garland of fresh flowers and carry several ears of wheat to further please the gods (ah, the good old days when flower arrangements were cheap). Once married, that night, the bride would be escorted by three young boys carrying candles to light the way, and they would travel to her husband’s home. There, she would quite literally be carried over the threshold by the bridal party (amazing how traditions are so far reaching, isn’t it?). The reason this was even done was because the Romans thought it was very unlucky for a bride to stumble on the threshold. So to avoid any bad fortune, she was simply carried over the threshold. What was unique about Roman marriages is that even though they were arranged, both parties had to be willing or the wedding wasn’t allowed to take place. So Roman women were actually quite lucky in that sense. If they *really* didn’t want to get married, they just put up a hand and said, “I think I’ll pass.” (Though I’m sure not in those same words)

Now what about how those best men and groomsmen? How did we end up with those? Well. We have the Anglo Saxons to thank for that. The Anglo Saxons went about things the Cave man way. If a man wanted a certain woman for a wife, he just had to hunt her down and drag her home to his abode and force her to marry him. You think he could manage a fiesty woman who most likely wasn’t going to cooperate on his own? Hell no. He needed back up. Hence the best man and groomsmen. They accompanied the “groom” on the hunt to ensure they not only got the “bride” but that should there be any resistance from the “bride’s” father or brothers, they could be handled. Talk about sweeping a woman off her feet!

And last but not least (as I promise to post part 2 on the 15th), Fleet marriages in London, England. My favorite. At the beginning of the 18th century, more and more weddings started taking place by special licence in which the ceremony itself was not in a church, but rather at the bride’s home. The whole idea of special licence was actually first introduced in the 14th century at about the same times banns were being required to be printed and read in the parish of the engaged couple. So basically, for three Sundays in a row, their upcoming marriage was announced to the world. Why? To allow any objections to surface during that time. Special licence became more popular however, because, at a fee, a couple could get married at any time and any place without the world knowing. By the 18th century, the upper classes who took offence to people rushing to be wed without the world knowing (after all, scandal could only be involved), it started to become known as “Fleet Marriages.” Why? Because the Fleet area of London was known for having several chapels that for a fee would perform the ceremony there and then. The priests didn’t give a rat’s you know what who was getting married and why as long as they got their money. If a girl was sobbing through the whole ceremony that she was supposed to marry someone else, if money was exchanged, she might as well be smiling. Which created quite a few problems (and stories).

One story goes that, and I quote, “The Duke of Hamilton married an 18 year old gal by the name of Miss Eliza Gunning at 12.30 a.m. at Mayfair Chapel on St. Valentine’s Day 1752. The marriage took place in such a haste that the duke hadn’t even purchased a wedding ring and he used a bed curtain ring (freak).” The freak, I put in, mind you. Just so you know. Grin. As it turned out Miss Eliza had been promised to someone else but the duke made sure that someone else was him. Talk about a crazy situation. And there were SO many of them! Too many to even count. It got so bad, actually, that in 1753 (hm…wait…that’s shortly after Miss Eliza got hitched against her will) Lord Hardwicke introduced what was known as the Marriage Act which made the church the one and only place legal for couples to marry. It also didn’t allow anyone under the age of 21 to marry without parental consent, and started making sure that Bishops weren’t just selling special licences to just anyone. Even though the law was passed in 1753, it took an entire year to take effect (imagine all the gals still getting married against their will during that year…). It became law throughout the land on Lady Day (how sweet), on March 25th 1754 at 11 a.m. (yes, they got it down to the minute). To close this particular post, I will say that on that same day before the law took effect at 11 a.m., 45 couples rushed over to the chapel that morning and got married. Long live marriage.

Until Part 2, Cheers and much love,
Delilah Marvelle